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OUR TOWN 

HOW WE BEGAN 

HOW WE ARE GOVERNED 



BRYN MAWR 

and 

LOWER MERION TOWNSHIP 



Ardmore, Bala, Bryn Mawr, Cynwyd, Gladwyne 
Merion, Narberth (Borough). 




MR. JOSEPH O. KERBAUGH 

ChairiTian, Township Commissioners 



OUR TOWN, HOW WE BEGAN 
HOW WE ARE GOVERNED 



BRYN MAWR 

AND 

LOWER MERION TOWNSHIP 



BY 

RUTH HIBBARD. A. B. 

under the 

Carola WoerishofFer Graduate Department of Social Economy 
of Bryn Mawr College 

in co-operation with 

The Bryn Mawr Community Center 



1920 

Pubhshed by the Pennsylvania League of Women Citizen* 
Lower Merion Township Branch 



.W^H^ 



Copyrighted. 1920, by 

The Pennsylvania League of Women Citizens 

Lower Merion Township Branch 



ICI.A571571 



OFFICERS OF LOWER MERION TOWNSHIP 

3 Justices of the Peace (6 years) — Hervey C. Ir- 
win, Richard T. Lewis (1925), H. S. Stillwagon 
(1923). 

2 Constables (4 years) — Robert J. Lindsay, Michael 
McDonough (1923). 

1 Real Estate Assessor (4 years) — Albert Lee 
(1923). 

1 Assistant Real Estate Assessor (4 years) — Storm 

Z. W. Patterson (1923). 

2 Assistant Triennial Assessors (4 years) — H. M. 

McClure, W. Gordon Smith (1923). 

13 Registry Assessors (4 years) — (1)* William B. 
Titlow, (2) Orion E. Klein, (3) Charles Mc- 
Moran, (4) David M. Ramsey, (5) James G. 
Newman, (6) Frank H. Lewis, (7) Terrence 
Connell, (8) Isaac Chambers, (9) E. Grant 
Mercer, (10) Michael McDonough, (11) Wal- 
ter B. Sharp, (12) Dwight D. Willard, (13) 
James E. Dolan (1921). 

13 Township Commissioners (4 years) — *(1) James 
A Stretch, (3) W. H. Moran, (5) Benj. H. Lud- 
low, (7) John Lewis Evans, (9) Martin P. 
Glynn, (11) Joseph O. Kerbaugh, (13) Joseph 
J. Skelton— 1923. (2) W. A. L. Barker, (4) 
Kane S. Green, (6) J. Howard Supplee, (8) 
William Frankenfield, (10) W. H. Sherwood, 
(12) Henry Delaplaine— 1921. 

*The number indicates the district of the Township which each 
person represents. See Map. 



7 School Directors (6 years) — William J. Clark, J. 
Harmon Wilson (1921), William C. Powell, 
William J. Byrnes, Jr., Richard J. Hamilton, 
(1923), William L. Austin, Thomas C. Yocum 
(1925). 

3 Auditors (4 years)— Audrey C. Dulltme (1921), 
Edmund N. Grossman (1923), Vacancy. 

Treasurer (4 years) — George Gane (1921). 

13 Judges of Elections (2 years) — (1) William G. 
Nelson, (2) Charles R. Smith, (3) Arthur 
Flowers, (4) F. Howard Shank, (5) William 
F. North, (6) C. Ernest Shank, (7) F. D. A. 
Cabeen, (8) Lewis R. Winter, Jr., (9) Fred- 
erick T. Moore, (10) Andrew Zassallo, (11) 
Arnold F. Gardner, (12) William J. Conlen, 
(13) Harry A. Ferreira (1921). 

26 Inspectors of Elections* (2 years) — (l)William L. 
Horning, George L. Hansel, (2) John Bolte, 
Louise S. Boyer, (3) Henry Angstadt, 
C. Edward Lentz, (4) W. J. Litzenberg, 
Henry W. Shire, (5) Henry W. Brown, 
Henry Brown, (6) Ernest H. Nicholson, 
John F. Casey, (7) Charles N. Agnew, (No 
minority), (8) Casper Bongilcoanni, Martin 
Costello, (9) William E. Clear, G. L. Smith, 
(10) W. W. Chambers, W. Kane, (11) E. W. 
Brown, John J. Doyle, (12) Archibald Ehle, 
(No minority), (13) Edward R. Jardan, John 
Haynes (1921). 

♦Majority Inspector given first, minority second. 

6 



THE ELECTOR'S CALENDAR. 

1919 — November 4th — Election of seven Town- 
ship Commissioners (for odd numbered districts); 
two members of the Board of Education, two Justices 
of the Peace, two Constables, one Real Estate As- 
sessor, one Assistant Real Estate Assessor, two As- 
sistant Triennial Assessors, one Auditor, thirteen 
Judges of Elections, and twenty-«six Inspectors of 
Elections. 

1921 — November 8th — Election of six Township 
Commissioners (for even numbered districts) ; two 
members of the Board of Education, thirteen Regis- 
try Assessors, one Auditor, thirteen Judges of Elec- 
tions and twenty-six Inspectors of Elections. 

1923 — November 3rd — Election of seven Town- 
ship Commissioners (for odd numbered districts) ; 
three members of the Board of Education, one Justice 
of the Peace, two Constables, one Real Estate As- 
sessor, one Assistant Real Estate Assessor, two Tri- 
ennial Assessors and one Auditor, 

1925 — November 6th — Election of six Township 
Commissioners, two School Directors, two Justices 
of the Peace, thirteen Registry Assessors, one Au- 
ditor, thirteen Judges of Elections and twenty-six 
Inspectors of Elections. 



PREFACE. 

This account of the early history and of the gov- 
ernment of Lower Merion Township was written for 
our present citizens, and our future citizens, the boys 
and girls of our community. Do we all know who are 
our chief executives and what is their term of office? 
Do we know for what we hold them responsible, and 
how they are repaid for their services to our town? 
Do we know where our elections are held, what are 
the boundaries of our election districts, which is our 
voting precinct and where our voting booth is? What 
officials have charge of all our school property, and 
are responsible for the selection of our school teachers 
and of the books our children study? Who takes care 
that we have a pure water supply, and that the milk 
dealers sell only pure milk? Whose business it is to 
make and enforce regulations to keep the standard of 
public health at a high level? Is not all such informa- 
tion essential if we are to vote intelligently, if we are 
to have a clean town, the best of schools, and strong 
and healthy citizens? It is to answer these questions 
that this pamphlet has been prepared. 

The historical sketch is based upon MERION 
IN THE WELSH TRACT, by Thomas Allen 
Glenn, and THE WELSH SETTLEMENT, by 



Charles H. Browning. To both of these works the 
writer refers all readers who may be interested to 
know more about the beginnings of our town. To 
Miss Frances Buffum, a student of Bryn Mawr Col- 
lege, who secured the material used in the account of 
the public health service, to the class in Social Better- 
ment and to the Seminary in Municipal Government 
of Bryn Mawr College, the author is indebted for 
assistance. The following list of the books and 
pamphlets to which reference is made will supply full 
information about the history and government of 
Lower Merion Township: 

BROWNING, CHARLES H. 

Welsh Settlement of Pennsylvania. William J, 
Campbell, Philadelphia, 1912. 

GLENN, THOMAS A. 

Merion in the Welsh Tract. Norristown, 1896. 

SHARPLESS, ISAAC. 

Quakerism and Politics. Ferris & Leach, Phila- 
delphia, 1905. 

MALTBY, ALBERT E. 

Elementary Civics for Pennsylvania. American 
Book Company, 1915. 

BONSALL, WARD. 

Handbook of Social Laws of Pennsylvania. 
Published by Philadelphia Society for Organ- 
izing Charity, 1914. 

10 



Compilation of the General Laws Relating to 
Townships. Legislative Reference Bureau, Har- 
risburg, 1916. 

School Laws of Pennsylvania. School Code and 
Other Laws Relating to the Public Schools, Har- 
risburg, 1915. 

SCHAEFFER, NATHAN C. 

Regulations of the Board of Health of Lower Merion 
Township, 1915. 

By-Laws of Lower Merion Commission, 1911. 

Directory of Lower Merion Public Schools, 1917-1918. 

Twenty-fourth Annual Report of the Bryn Mawr 
Hospital, July, 1917. 

RUTH HIBBARD. 
Bryn Mawr, March, 1920. 



11 



OUR TOWN 

HOW WE BEGAN 

HOW WE ARE GOVERNED 

BRYN MAWR 

and 

LOWER MERION TOWNSHIP 



Merion Township, originally called the Town of 
Merioneth, was settled by some Welsh families who 
left their homes in Wales because of persecution for 
their Quaker beliefs. Dr. Edward Jones, Edward 
Reese and others, some forty in all, from Merioneth- 
shire, in Wales, after a voyage of eleven weeks, 
arrived in Philadelphia in August, 1682, to settle upon 
a tract of about five thousand acres of land which had 
been granted to Edward Jones and John Thomas by 
William Penn in London for the sum of £100. Of 
the journey Dr. Edward Jones wrote to John Thomas, 
who was unable to join the party, "We have been 
aboard eleven weeks before we made the land, and 
in all this time we wanted neither meate, drink or 
water. ... A great many could eat little or no 
beefe, though it was good. Butter and cheese eats 
well upon ye sea. . The passengers are all 



living, save one child, yt died of a surfeit. Let no 
friends tell that they are either too old or too young, 
(to come over) for the Lord is sufficient to preserve 
both to the uttermost. Here is an old man about 80 
years of age; he is rather better yn when he sett out. 
Likewise here are young babes doing very well con- 
sidering the sea diet." 

Of their tract of land he writes, "I hope it will 
please thee, . . . for it hath most rare timber. I 
have not seen the like in all these parts. There is 
water enough besides."^ 

Other Welsh companies came over in the next 
few years and settled upon land now occupied chiefly 
by the townships of Lower Merion, Radnor and Hav- 
erford, about forty thousand acres in all, known for 
more than a century as the Great Welsh Tract. These 
colonists hoped to have a separate government of 
their own in this new country, and to make laws and 
maintain courts of justice for themselves. But grad- 
ually colonists who were not Welsh took up vacant 
sections of the tract and the dream of the "Welsh 
Barony" of Pennsylvania was never realized. At the 
time of settlement, this region was considered the far 
wilderness by the residents of Philadelphia, but the 
Welsh were attracted to it because there were many 
streams and abundant woodlands and fertile soil, and 
the rolling country reminded them of their old home. 

With great energy and persistence, in the face of 



'Quoted in "Welsh Settlement of Pennsy/vania," by Charles H. 
Browning, pp. 65, 66, 67. 

u 



many difficulties from lack of tools and necessary 
materials, and from the opposition of envious but less 
industrious neighbors, they built excellent roads, 
established a ferry over the Schuylkill, built mills and 
houses for themselves and meeting houses, and cul- 
tivated the land till the settlement became by far the 
finest in this part of Pennsylvania. A writer in 1708 
referring to this Welsh tract said in a letter, " 'Tis 
very populous, and the people are very industrious, 
by which means this country is better cleared than 
any other part of the country. The inhabitants have 
many fine plantations; they are looked upon to be as 
thriving and wealthy as any in the provinces.'" 

At first the settlers were not allowed to construct 
mills for themselves, but were obliged to carry their 
grain to William Penn's official grist mill. Later, 
however, there were grist and sawmills in Haverford, 
one on Cobb Creek as early as 1688, and the other on 
Darby Creek, built in 1703. Cobb Creek is said to 
have gotten its name from William Cobb whom Penn 
established over one of his mills as official miller. 
With some of their roads we are familiar. The old 
Gulph Road, now called Roberts Road, was in use as 
early as 1690. The old Lancaster Road was planned 
in 1683. and the old Haverford Road dates back to 
1704. These roads were marked by mile stones set up 
by the Surveyor General and bearing the Penn arms. 



'Quoted in Browning's "Welsh Settlement of Pennsylvania," p. 318. 

15 




Ancient Mile-stone, with Penn's Arms, on the Old Gulph Road, 

North of Bryn Mawr. 

(Courtesy of II. J'arker Kolfe, rhoto>,'rai)her) 



16 



One of these still stands on the old Gulph Koaa just 
northeast of Bryn Mawr College. The earliest bound- 
ary line stone in the neighborhood of Bryn Mawr is on 
Haverford College land north of Cobb Creek and 
bears the date 1683. 

At a time when many people could not write even 
their own names, most of these Welsh settlers were 
men of excellent education, and in order to educate 
their children they secured able teachers from Wales. 
Nearly every family had a library and the meetings of 
Merion, Radnor and Haverford united in maintaining 
a circulating library as early as the end of the seven- 
teenth century. 

Among the early settlers of that part of Lower 
Merion Township, where Bryn Mawr now stands, 
was Rowland Ellis, who came to this country in 1697 
and settled upon a six hundred acre plantation which 
he called "Bryn Mawr," after his old home in Wales. 
This estate was afterward sold to Richard Harrison 
and was by him called "Harriton." It is the property 
directly east and north of Bryn Mawr College and is 
of interest to the students of the history of Bryn 
Mawr because of an ancient burial ground situated on 
the estate. The land upon which the present Bryn 
Mawr stands was originally part of a grant which 
William Penn made in 1684 to one Edward Prichard. 
It joined the lands belonging to Rowland Ellis and 
John Humphreys, of Haverford. About two hundred 
acres of this tract came into the possession of Ben- 
jamin Humphreys, who lived at his home near the 

17 



Bryn Mawr College grounds until 1738. Bryn Mawr 
was first called Humphreysville from the Humphreys 
family. It is mentioned in the State Gazette as early 
as 1832 as a village on the Pike, but it was not plotted 
out until 1868-9. It had no post office before 1830. It 
is said to have had twenty-one houses in 1858. 

The railroad built through this section helped the 
growth of the villages along the Main Line. The first 
railroad in the State of Pennsylvania, the Columbia 
Railway, was opened in 1832 and extended from 
Philadelphia to Paoli. The passengers were ferried 
over the river to Callowhill Street. From there the 
cars were dragged along the rails to Paoli by horses. 
Later steam engines were used. The road was built 
of iron rails "laid in iron chairs, bolted to sills of 
stone." It ran through Fairmount Park, Athensville 
(now Ardmore), between Founders' Hall of Haver- 
ford College and the present Meeting House, to 
Whitehall in Bryn Mawr, then on to Paoli. In 1850 
the Columbia Road was taken over by the Pennsylva- 
nia Railroad. A guidebook published in 1860 says 
that Whitehall, 10 miles from Philadelphia, was the 
first regular station on the railroad, and that West 
Haverford, where is now "Ye Olde Store" at Rose- 
mont, was a flag station.^ 

A poster of this first railroad, dated 1837, adver- 
tises it as the "Pioneer Fast Line," and states that one 
can go by railroad and canal packet from Philadelphia 



'Browning, pp. 476-480. 

18 



to Pittsburgh in 3^ 2 days and that "for speed and 
comfort" the line is "not excelled by any other in the 
United States.'" 

If you look at the map of Lower Merion Town- 
ship you will see a jog on the southwestern edge 
which the county line makes between Lower Merion 
and Haverford Townships. A long time ago when 
the three townships of Lower Merion, Haverford and 
Radnor were all in Philadelphia county, a petition 
was brought by Montgomery county to the Deputy 
Governor who was serving in William Penn's absence, 
asking that some of the Welsh settlements be trans- 
ferred to that county, because it was sparsely settled. 

It wanted the number of the inhabitants to be 
increased so that the county funds might be more 
easily raised. At that time the Welsh had strong 
political influence, and were opposed to certain inter- 
ests advanced by Governor Blackwell. Moreover, the 
Welsh were very independent and were hoping, even 
then, to set up a little separate government of their 
own within the province of Pennsylvania. Governor 
Blackwell may have thought it would lessen their 
power if they were divided. At any rate, in spite 
of their protests, the county line was made to run 
directly across this Great Welsh Tract, so that ever 
since then, Radnor and Haverford have been in Dela- 
ware county and Lower Merion in Montgomery 
county." 

Our township is six and one-half miles long and 

Ibid., p. 478. 
'Sharpless, "Quakerism and Politics," p. 151. 

19 



four miles wide. It has an area of more than fourteen 
thousand acres. It extends to West Conshohocken 
Borough on the West, to Philadelphia County on the 
East, to Upper Merion Township on the North and 
to Haverford and Radnor Townships on the South 
and West. There are more than 17,000 people living 
in this township, a population greater than that of 
any other township in Montgomery County. It has 
more than twice as many inhabitants as Radnor 
Township, and four times as many as Haverford. 

With so many people going back and forth over 
its highways and bridges the township must see that 
they are kept safe for travel, and so the voters elect 
men to do this. These men are called the township 
commissioners and they are our chief executive 
officers. Since the township contains a population of 
more than three hundred persons to the square mile, 
it is by the State law a township of the first class. ^ 
Such a township may elect five commissioners for 
5000 inhabitants and an additional commissioner for 
each 2000 over. 

Lower Merion Township has thirteen commis- 
sioners.^ These officials have the care of highways 
which are already built and may have new roads 
surveyed and constructed. They have charge also 
of the construction and repair of the township's 
drainage system. They may establish lights along 
the highways and provide means for fire protection. 
By a State law they may levy an annual tax of not 

'Laws of Pennsylvania, 1907, p. 305, Art. 230. 
'Maltby. p. 64. 

20 



Plan 

OF 

. LOWER -MERION -TOWNSHIP 

MONTGOMERYpCOUNT-Y.^PENNA. 







more than one per cent a year and may borrow money 
for township purposes.' If the township is involved 
in legal difficulties it is represented in court by these 
commissioners. They also grant franchises and make 
laws called ordinances which all the townspeople are 
obliged to observe or be liable to punishment by fine 
or imprisonment. These commissioners are elected 
by the voters on the first Tuesday after the first 
Monday in November in odd years. They are divided 
among the election districts, one or more of these dis- 
tricts choosing one commissioner to look after its 
interests. 

Election districts are small sections into which 
a township is divided by the County Court of 
Quarter Sessions. These sections must be of 'com- 
pact and contiguous territory." By an Act of Assem- 
bly in 1917- the election districts of Lower Merion 
Township were numbered by the Court of Common 
Pleas of Montgomery County. Commissioners from 
the odd numbered districts will serve until 1920, and 
those from the even numbered districts until 1922. ' 

'General Laws of Townships, § 355. 
'Act 229. f:? 2, Pennsylvania Laws, 1917. 

'District District ^, _ ... Popular 

M _ M^ Name Address t-.- . • . xt 

Name. No. Distnct Name 

Lower 1 James A. Stretch, Narberth, General Wayne 

Upper 2 W. A. L. Barker. Gladwyne. Gladwyne 

East Lower 3 William B. Francis, W. Manayunk. Pencoyd 

East Bryn Mawr... 4 Kane S. Green, Bryn Mawr, E. Bryn Mawr 

North Ardmore . 5 H. W. Smedley, Ardmore, N. Ardmore 

Rosemont 6 J. Howard Supplee. Rosemont. Rosemont 

Haverford 7 John Lewis Evans, Haverford, Haverford 

South Ardmore ... 8 Wm. G. Frankenheld, Ardmore, S. Ardmore 

Bala 9 Martin P. Glynn, Bala. Bala 

West Ardmore .... 10 W. H. Sherwood, Ardmore, W. Ardmore 

West Bryn Mawr. . 11 Jos. O. Kerbaugh. Bryn Mawr, W. Bryn Mawr 

Merion 12 Henry Delaplaine. Merion, Merion 

Cynwyd 13 Joseph J. Skelton. Jr. Cynwyd, Cynwyd 

21 



Each township commissioner serves for four 
years and receives a nominal salary of $60 a year, a 
proportionate amount of which is to be deducted for 
"each and every regular meeting" of the board which 
a commissioner fails to attends 

Funds are needed to carry on the township gov- 
ernment. These are obtained by means of taxation. 
Every one who owns property in the township must 
help to pay the township expenses, and the township's 
share of the county expenses. But before any prop- 
erty can be taxed a value must be set upon it and this 
valuation of all the taxable property in the township 
takes place once in three years. An official called the 
township assessor is elected to make this valuation 
and to draw up a list of all who should pay taxes. The 
assessor is elected for a term of four years by the 
qualified voters at the regular municipal election. 
The assessor and assistant assessors are paid accord- 
ing to the number of days they are employed upon 
the duties of their office." Any one who objects to his 
assessment may petition the Court of Quarter Ses- 
sions of the County. • Besides placing a value upon 
taxable property the assessor prepares every year a 
list of all the people in the township who are qualified 
to vote and reports all births and deaths during the 



'Act of June 1, 1915. Pennsylvania Laws, 684. General Laws of 
Townships, § 597. 

General Laws of Townships, § 402, 403, 404, 405. 
Tbid., § 413. 

22 




c 

CO 

'% 

O 



-2£ 

u ■"* 

■fflc:' 



S '^ ^ 



23 



year to the clerk of the Orphans' Court (a county 
court)/ 

After all taxable property has been valued 
the taxes must be collected, and by an act of the State 
Legislature of May, 1907, the township treasurer was 
made responsible for the collection of taxes." This 
official is elected by the voters for a term of four years, 
and is obliged to give a bond with one or more sure- 
ties for the faithful performance of his duties as 
treasurer. ' He is required by law to send a notice to 
every taxable person, of the valuation of his property, 
the rate of taxation, the full amount of taxes for 
which he is liable, the place where and the times 
when the tax is payable, the limit of time of pay- 
ment, together with a statement of the amount to be 
remitted if paid promptly and the penalty for delayed 
payment. The law requires that these notices be sent 
to the last known post office address of the taxpayer. 

There is an act of April 15, 1834, apparently still 
in force that nothing in the law authorizes "the arrest 
or imprisonment for non-payment of any tax of any 
female or infant or person of unsound mind."^ The 
township treasurer receives as compensation for his 
services a sum equal to two per cent, of all taxes 
received or collected by him and in addition one per 
cent, on all sewer rents. This rate is fixed by ordi- 
nance of the township commissioners The township 

'Maltby, o. 65. 

'General Lerws of Townships, § 367. 

'Ibid., § 425. 

'General Laws of Townships, § 419. 

24 



tax rate was changed in 1919 from 81^ mills to 10 
mills on the dollar. 

You will readily see that we should have some 
one to look over the accounts of all the township 
officers, to find out if the funds are properly collected 
and expended. So three men are elected as auditors 
for a term of four years, to audit all the township 
accounts.^ The auditors are obliged by law to file 
within ten days after the audit is completed a copy of 
the accounts with the township secretary, and another 
with the clerk of the Court of Quarter Sessions of the 
County.- The auditors also post statements of the 
account for everybody to read. If you are a taxpayer, 
and you object, for any reason, to the auditor's report, 
you may appeal to the County Court of Common 
Pleas. 

The secretary of the Board of Township Com- 
missioners keeps the official minutes of the Board, and 
the minute book and other records and documents 
of the township must be open to the inspection of any 
taxpayer.^ 

To keep order in our township a chief of police is 
elected by a majority vote of the Board of Township 
Commissioners. His term of service begins on the 
first of February and lasts for one year. He and his 
patrolmen are under the supervision of a standing 
committee of the Board of Commissioners, called the 
Police Committee, which has power to suspend any 

'Ibid.. § 600. 

'Maltby. p. 66. 

'General Laws of Townships, § 563. 

25 



of the police officers, but must report any suspension 
immediately to the commissioners for their approval 
or disapproval.' 

The State law provides that we may elect two 
justices of the peace to serve for a term of six years. 
These may consider both crimnial and civil cases and 
may impanel juries of six men. Civil cases involving 
not more than $300 may be tried by a justice of the 
peace. In all cases involving more than $5.33, his 
decision "is subject to the right of appeal to the higher 
courts."- The justice of the peace may issue war- 
rants for the arrest of those who are charged with any 
crime, and may impose a fine or term in jail for minor 
offenses. In the case of serious crimes the offender is 
bound over to the county courts for trial. Other 
duties of the justice of the peace are to administer 
oaths, perform marriages, issue search warrants and 
witness signatures to legal documents. His compen- 
sation consists of fees." 

We know that a town is good to live in, just so 
far as its residents are good citizens. The men who 
have made the laws for our State knew that in order 
to have good citizens, all the boys and girls living in 
the State must have free and equal opportunities for 
an education. So they made a law which compels 
every city and borough and township in the State of 
Pennsylvania to provide schools and teachers and 
textbooks for all those between six and twenty-one 



'By-Laws of Lower Merion Township Commission. 

^Maltby, p. 71. 
Ibid., pp. 71, 72. 

26 



years of age who want to go to school.' Every town- 
ship is a school district having the same boundaries 
as the township. Because these districts vary in the 
number of people living in them they are divided into 
four classes. Those districts which contain 500,000 
or more inhabitants are called districts of the first 
class. If they have less than 500,000, but more than 
30,000, inhabtitants they are districts of the second 
class. 

Lower Merion has less than 30,000 but more 
than 5000 inhabitants so it is a school district of the 
third class. In all these school districts certain people, 
men or women, are chosen to be school directors. In 
districts of the first class, fifteen directors are chosen. 
Nine are chosen in districts of the second class. Since 
Lower Merion is a district of the third class it has 
seven school directors. These are chosen at the reg- 
ular election in November by all the voters of the 
township. They serve on the Board of Education for 
six years, beginning with the first Monday in Decem- 
ber following their election. Not all of the six have 
been chosen in any one year, so that their terms of 
office do not end at the same time. Any man or 
woman, of good moral character, who is twenty-one 
years of age or over, and who has been a resident of 
Lower Merion Township for at least one year pre- 
vious to the date of his election, may be chosen school 
director. - 



'Constitution of 1873, State of Pennsylvania, Article X, § I ; School 
Code. Edition 1915. Article IV, § 401, p. 26. 

'State Constitution, 1873. Article X. § 3; School Code. Article II. 
§ 204. 

27 



But no one may be a school director who is 
employed at the same time by the township in any 
other township office/ All of our public school prop- 
erty, which is valued at over one million dollars,^ is in 
charge of our Board of Education. The members of 
this Board also appoint or dismiss and fix the salaries 
of all the teachers, the principals and the school super- 
intendent. They fix the length of the school term, 
beyond the eight months required by the State law; 
they choose the textbooks used in the schools and 
approve the course of study. 

To m.eet the expense of carrying on our schools a 
school tax upon real estate and personal property is 
levied by our Board of Education every year during 
the month of April or May. This tax may not in any 
one year be more than twenty-five mills on the dollar 
of the assesed valuation of all taxable property, and 
it is assessed upon all the property on which county 
taxes are levied.'^ The school tax in Lower Merion 
for the year ending July 2, 1918, was eight mills on 
the dollar, and amounted to $209,055.36.' The cost of 
each grade school pupil was $9.97 per month; of each 



'School Code, Article II, § 207. 

The members of the Board are: 

Dr. William C. Powell, Bryn Mawr. Term expires 1924. 

Mr. William L. Austin, Rosemont. Term expires 1920. 

Mr. William J. Byrnes, Jr., Ardmore. Term expires 1924. 

Mr. J. Harmon Wilson, Cynwyd. Term expires 1921. 

Mr. William J. Clark, Ardmore. Term expires 1921. 

Mr. Richard J. Hamilton, Ardmore. Term expires 1924. 

Mr. Thomas C. Yocum, Cynwyd. Term expires 1921. 

'$1,077,556.73. Directory Lower Merion Township Public Schools,. 
1917-1918, p. 31. 

'School Code, Article V, § 537, 540. 

*School Directory, Lower Merion Township Public Schools, 1918- 
1919. 

28 




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29 



High School pupil was $12.45 per month. For the 
year ending July 2, 1919, the school tax was raised to 
10 mills on the dollar and amounted to $265,083.90. 
The cost of each pupil for the year ending July 2, 
1919, was as follows: Grade school, $6.27 per month; 
High School, $13.56 per monthj There is also in every 
school district of the second, third and fourth classes 
in Pennsylvania a tax called the occupation tax, of 
at least one dollar, which is assessed for school pur- 
poses upon every male resident who is twenty-one 
years of age or over.' All the school taxes are col- 
lected by a tax collector, who is appointed by the 
Board of Education at a salary (for 1918-1919) of 
$2500.' 

In order that we may know that these school 
funds are carefully collected and expended two men 
are appointed every year in the month of May by the 
County Court of Common Pleas to act as school 
auditors. They must "carefully inspect every school 
order issued for the payment of money by the Board 
of Education and the accounts of the school treasurer 
and any other official in the school district whose 
accounts are to be audited."^ 

We have said that the State laws direct that 
schools must be provided for all persons between the 



'The amount is obtained by dividing the total expenses by the num- 
ber of pupils. The total expenses include salaries, transportation, text 
books, heat, light, insurance, supplies — everything except new buildings 
and new equipment. 

'School Code, Article V, § 542, 543. 

'School Directory, Lower Merion Township Public Schools. 1917- 
1918, p. 32. 

'School Code, Article XXVI. § 2613. 

30 



ages of six and twenty-one years who want to go to 
school. On the other hand, all children who are eight 
years old must go to school until they are sixteen, 
unless they are excused by the Board of Education 
for some "urgent" reason or some mental or physical 
disability, or unless they are fourteen years old and 
have secured what is called an employment certificate 
to permit them to go to work.' No one may allow a 
child between the age of eight and fourteen to work 
during school hours. Any one who does so is liable to 
a fine or imprisonment." Every mother, father or 
guardian who fails to send a child to school must pay 
a fine. To see that all children of school age are 
attending school the school directors appoint attend- 
ance officers. These officers may arrest any child who 
fails to attend school, or any child who is incorrigible 
or disorderly during school hours or on his way to 
and from school.^ 

In Lower Merion school district there are chil- 
dren 14 years of age or over who would like to go to 
school, but are obliged to work in the daytime. For 
these the Board of Education will provide a free even- 
ing school if the parents of twenty-five or more pupils 
above the age of fourteen apply for it, and if an 
average attendance of at least fifteen pupils can be 
maintained. An evening manual training school will 



Ibid., Article XIV, ^ 1414, 1415. 1416. 
'Ibid., Article XIV, J? 1422. 
^Ibid.. Article XIV. ij 1423. 
\'bid.. Article XIV ^ 1432. 
'Ibid., Article XIX, <; 1901. 



31 



be established and equipped for pupils above the age 
of fourteen years, if seventy-five or more taxpayers of 
the district request such a school and at least twenty- 
five pupils apply for admission and keep up an average 
attendance of fifteen.' The State law also provides 
that the Board of Education of any school district may 
establish a kindergarten or assist any kindergarten 
that has been established under any non-sectarian 
association.- "Instead of establishing or maintaining 
a separate public library the Board of Education may 
by a two-thirds vote join with or aid any individual or 
association in the maintenance . . . of a free pub- 
lic non-sectarian library." " In order that the prop- 
erty which the citizens have invested in their public 
schools may be used to serve the interests of the com- 
munity, the State law-makers have given permission 
to any Board of Education to allow its school grounds 
and buildings to be used "for social, recreation and 
other proper purposes," under regulations which the 
local board may adopt, and to make arrangements 
''with any association or individual for the temporary 
use of school property for schools, playgrounds, 
social, recreation, or other proper educational pur- 
poses."' 

If our town is to be a good town to live in, the 
people living in it must be in good health. You would 
not want to live in a place where there were many 



'Ibid., Article XIX, ^ 1902. 
■'Ibid., Article XIX, § 1904. 
r-^id.. Article XXV, § 2510. 
'Ibid., Article VI, § 627. 



32 



sick people. What is being done, here in this town, to 
keep the standard of health high? Our township 
commissioners do their part in making ordinances to 
do away with whatever may be harmful to public 
health. The township has connection with the Phila- 
delphia sewage system. Garbage is collected at the 
expense of the township by order of the township 
commissioners. Three years ago the legislature of 
the State passed a law requiring every township or 
borough of the first class to maintain a Board of 
Health of five members, at least one of whom should 
be a reputable physician of not less than two years 
of medical practice.^ In our town these men are 
appointed by the president of the Township Commis- 
sion to serve on the Board of Health for five years. 
The members of the board serve without any compen- 
sation. They choose their own president and appoint 
a secretary who may or may not be one of their 
number. They appoint a health officer who must not 
be one of the board members. The secretary and the 
health officer serve for one year and receive whatever 
salary is determined by the Board of Health and rati- 
fied by the township commissioners. The president 
of our Board of Health is Dr. B. K. Wilbur, of Bryn 
Mawr.^ 

The secretary of the Board of Health is George 



'General Laws of Townships. § 642, § 643. 
'The other members are: 
Andrew Macdonald, Ardmore. 
William P. Landis. Ardmore. 
Dr. Alexander R. Evans, Gladwyne. 
Edward B. Jarden, Cynwyd. 



33 



C. Anderson, of Ardmore. The health officer is 
Marvin E. Reynolds, of Ardmore. Formerly the 
health officer was also the superintendent of health 
and drainage, and there was a deputy health officer 
to assist the chief health officer. Now the engineer 
in charge of the Department of Plumbing and Sewers, 
Hartman K. Calvert, also performs the duties of 
deputy health officer. 

Our Board of Health not only enforces the regu- 
lations of the State Board of Health but it has the 
power to make other health regulations, which are 
made obligatory upon every resident by an ordinance 
of our Board of Township Commissioners. Such an 
ordinance was passed in 1915 and the rules and regu- 
lations are described in a pamphlet issued by the 
township commissioners, which you may obtain by 
applying to the secretary, G. C. Anderson, Ardmore. 
or to any member of the Board of Health. These 
rules especially provide that all the streets and roads 
must be kept clean; that no refuse or garbage of 
any sort may be allowed upon them nor waste water 
of any sort allowed to drain upon them.^ All plans 
and specifications for drainage must be filed with the 
Board of Health, and when the work is done it must 
be examined and approved by the health officer.- No 
water closets may be placed in an unventilated room 
or apartment. No privy vaults or cesspools may be 



Rules and Regulations of the Board of Health of Lower Merion 
Township, 1915, pp 3, 9. 
'Ibid., pp. 34, 35. 

34 



built within twenty feet of buildings used for resi- 
dence, and all must be water tight and so constructed 
as to be easily cleaned.' No one is allowed to keep a 
pig pen within the township except by permission of 
the Board of Health. All stables must be kept in a 
sanitary condition, satisfactory to this board. No 
one is permitted to burn any substance within the 
limits of the township which shall emit any obnoxious 
odor.' 

There are upwards of thirty communicable dis- 
eases which must be reported to the Board of Health. 
Those afflicted with certain of these diseases must be 
kept under quarantine and a warning of this quaran- 
tine must be posted upon their place of residence.' 
Moreover, all teachers of public or private schools and 
of Sunday schools are obliged to send home any chil- 
dren or other persons who come to the school having 
any unusual rash or skin eruption or who complain of 
soreness of the throat or have symptoms of whooping 
cough or of any eye disease and they must report this 
fact to the health officer. No one who has been ill and 
under quarantine may return to school except with a 
certificate duly signed and stating that the quarantine 
and disinfecting regulations have been complied 
with.' 

Any one who defaces, covers up or removes 
any placard posted by the Board of Health to notify 

'Ibid., pp. 8. 9. 

'Ibid., p. 10. 

'Ibid., pp. 46, 47. 

*Ibid., pp. 52. 53. 

35 



the public of the existence of any of these diseases, or 
who fails to comply with any of these regulations, is 
liable to fine or imprisonment/ Every loyal resident 
will co-operate with our Board of Health in observing 
these regulations even where they entail temporary 
inconvenience or discomfort. 

Every pupil of the public schools is examined 
once a year for vision, hearing and breathing. The 
teeth, tonsils, cervical glands, head and skin are 
inspected and examination is made for tuberculosis, 
nervous diseases and malnutrition. If a child is in 
need of care, the medical inspector gives instructions 
to the teacher, and the teacher must carry out the 
instructions during the year and give a copy of the 
instructions to the parents or guardian of the child. 
Each school keeps a record of each child's inspection 
with a copy of the note sent to the parent notifying 
him of any defect, together with a statement as to 
whether treatment was given and an opinion of the 
result. 

The Bryn Mawr schools have no school nurse 
to carry out the recommendations and instructions 
of this medical inspector where the parents cannot or 
will not do so. In some cases the district nurse 
employed by the Main Line Citizens' Association has 
been called upon by the school inspector. 

To protect children the State law forbids any 
one to distribute upon the streets or the premises of 
houses any samples of medicine, ink, or coloring or 

'Ibid., p. 58. 

36 



polishing compounds. Any one convicted of this 
offense may be brought before any justice of the 
peace, and fined $20 or imprisoned for twenty days.' 
Moreover, "all persons are forbidden to sell, give or 
furnish tobacco in any form to a child under sixteen." 
This offense is "punishable by a fine of $100 and im- 
prisonment in the county jail for thirty days."* To 
sell or to give any cigarette or cigarette paper to a 
minor is punishable by a fine of not less than $100. ■' 

Two sources of disease which every community 
must watch are the water supply and the milk supply. 
If these are kept pure it is likely that a high standard 
of health may be maintained. A few years ago the 
death rate from typhoid fever, due to impurities in 
the water, was higher in Bryn Mawr than in Philadel- 
phia. An investigation was made, many sources of 
pollution of the water were found and the water com- 
pany was obliged to remedy its supply. The water 
now comes from two neighboring creeks, Crum 
Creek and Pickering Creek. It is chemically treated 
and is reasonably free from impurities. 

The milk that supplies Bryn Mawr comes from 
local dairies, from each of which the Board of Health 
takes a sample once a month. This sample is exam- 
ined by an expert chemist, Dr. David W. Horn, of 
Bryn Mawr. Visible dirt in the milk means that the 
milk contains eight times as much invisible dirt or 
bacteria. Every milk dealer has to secure a license 

'Act of May. 1901, P. L. Ill, p. 7. Bonsall's Social Laws of Penna. 
•Act of July. 1901, P. L. 638, p. 6. Ibid. 
■Act of May 7. 1913, P. L. 198, p. 6. Ibid 

37 



from the Board of Health. Skim milk must be plainly 
labeled. The misbranding of milk as "Baby Milk," 
"Pasteurized Milk," etc., which does not meet the 
requirements of the Board of Health regarding such 
milk is punishable by a fine. The sale of mixed milk, 
milk from quarantined premises or from diseased 
cows is absolutely forbidden. It is also against the 
law to sell milk to which has been added any preserv- 
ative or any adulterant such as ice or water. Any 
person doing so is subject to a fine of not more than 
$25 for the first offense and $50 for every subsequent 
offense.^ 

Dairies are inspected by both State and local 
officials, and there are specific regulations as to the 
cleanliness and care of stables, prevention of contami- 
nation in bottling, storing and sealing of milk and 
milk cans, sterilizing of bottles and the use of corks.' 
The Board of Health uses the dairy score card of the 
United States Government to record all these points 
and a score of from sixty to eighty points is required. 
In addition to what the Board of Health does there 
are certain things which the individual may do: 

1. Never buy milk except from a licensed dealer. 

2. Never buy or obtain milk from quarantined 

premises. 

3. Watch for visible dirt, complain to the milk 

man, then take a sample of the milk to Dr. 
Horn, or to a member of the Board of 
Health. 



'Rules and Regulations of Board of Health of Lower Merion 
Township, p. 19. 
•Ibid., p. 26. 

38 



4. Keep the milk always in a cool place, prefer- 

ably in a refrigerator. 

5. Do not use a metallic or permanent cork or 

stopper in a milk jar or bottle. 

6. If there is any uncertainty about the source 

of the milk or its purity, especially in the 
summer, pasteurize it by placing it in 
bottles in a large pan of water over a 
burner, having enough water in the pan to 
come up to the neck of the bottle. Keep 
the water just below the boiling point for 
thirty minutes. This process renders any 
bacteria in the milk harmless and does not 
make the milk any the less palatable or 
easily digested as does the process of ster- 
ilization by bringing the milk to the boiling 
point. 

The adulteration of food or the selling of adul- 
terated food is expressly forbidden.' The meats and 
refrigerators of the local markets and provision stores 
are inspected by a State inspector at unstated 
intervals, generally about every two months. The 
meat has already been inspected before and after kill- 
ing and is officially stamped, as is all cold storage 
food. The State inspector looks at these stamps and 
examines the ice chests and fat cans to see that the 
trimmings contain a proper amount of suet, the 
absence of which would indicate that inferior animals 
had been used. The local Board of Health requires 
that "all fish, fowl and meats exposed for sale shall 
be screened from flies." that "no decaying vegetables, 
fruits, fish, shell-fish, game, poultry, eggs or meat or 

'Ibid, p. SI. 

39 



any food substance that is unfit for human food shall 
be sold or exposed for sale.'" The local Board of 
Health makes no regular inspection of markets, bak- 
eries, or groceries. Every housekeeper should visit 
the stores where her supplies are purchased. If the 
owner refuses to make any needful arrangements for 
insuring the purity of his supplies, or to remedy any 
complaints brought against him, the case should be 
taken to the Board of Health. If any suspicious look- 
ing foreign matter is found on any food, particularly 
that which is to be eaten raw, it should be taken to 
Dr. Horn for chemical analysis. 

So far we have been talking about the way in 
which our town is governed, but if a town is to be 
healthy and happy there is a great deal which cannot 
be done by the elected officials of the town. It is 
necessary for the citizens of the town to aid the offi- 
cials. The citizens of every town, old and young, 
want a chance to play and a place to be amused. The 
children of every town need a playground, and young 
people need a place to hold club meetings; the boys 
and girls need a gymnasium; the older people need 
rooms for recreation, and everybody needs a library. 
Then, too, the citizens of every town want that 
town to be beautiful as well as clean. The Township 
Commissioners cannot spend the taxes for things 
which the citizens do not want, and so the citizens 
must come together and decide what they want, and 
often the citizens must pay for some of these things, 

-Ibid., p. 30. 

40 



such as signs on our streets, and a public park, and 
wider roads, and then, finally, the Government will 
decide that if the citizens are so anxious to have these 
things it is right to spend the taxes for them. 

Every town needs a hospital. It has to care for 
its sick and its aged, and its children who have no 
homes, and the people who are out of work, or the 
families that are in trouble, and so the citizens of the 
town form private organizations to do all these 
things. 

In our town of Bryn Mawr the organizations 
which do most of these things are the Main Line 
Citizens' Association, the Social Service Department 
of the Federation of Churches, the Bryn Mawr Com- 
munity Center, the Bryn Mawr Hospital and the Red 
Cross Home Service. 

To take care of our residents while they are ill 
and to make them well as soon as possible the Bryn 
Mawr Hospital was established nearly twenty-five 
years ago. This is a private hospital with a free ward 
of twelve to sixteen beds for men, the same number 
for women and about ten for children. There are also 
semi-private beds at moderate rates. The hospital 
receives patients from within a radius of thirty to 
fifty miles around Bryn Mawr. Over one thousand 
patients were cared for in the hospital during the past 
year. A free dispensary for medical and surgical 
cases is open every day between twelve and one 
o'clock, with free prescriptions where necessary, and 
a nominal payment of twenty-five cents for each 

41 



treatment. Three thousand seven hundred and 
twenty-six patients were treated in the dispensary in 
the year 1919-1920. The hospital social service sec- 
retary and her assistant visit the families of patients 
where it seems advisable, and give relief, if necessary. 

The hospital also maintains an eye dispensary, 
which is open on Mondays and Fridays at two 
o'clock; a dental dispensary, which is open on Tues- 
days and Thursdays from two to five, and on Satur- 
days from nine to twelve; and a nose and throat dis- 
pensary, which is open on Wednesdays at two 
o'clock. 

The Main Line Citizens' Association provides 
two district nurses. These nurses take any case that is 
reported, either through the hospital, the social 
service secretaries, the doctors, or other individuals. 
They do not work entirely with charity patients but 
are often employed for a day or part of a day in fam- 
ilies where some temporary assistance is needed. The 
infant mortality in Bryn Mawr in recent years has 
been greater than in Philadelphia, Boston or New 
York. Because of this, particular attention has been 
given by the nurses to infant hygiene and pre-natal 
care in the many families which have neither the 
means nor the facilities to provide that care and atten- 
tion which is essential to the welfare of their children. 
That which secures the welfare of the children secures 
also the welfare of the whole town, for no town can 
prosper long unless all its people, young and old, have 
sound minds and sound bodies. 

42 



Twenty-five years ago the Bryn Mawr Citizens' 
Association was organized, and in 1909 it came to 
be known as the Main Line Citizens' Association. It 
has about eight hundred members, and these mem- 
bers carry on their work for civic improvement 
through committees. It has a Committee on Roads 
and Automobiles, which tries to have the roads im- 
proved, and has arranged for the placing of new road 
signs which shall be beautiful as well as useful. It 
has a Home Garden Committee, which offers prizes 
for the best kept yards and gardens, and so tries to 
have our town beautiful. It has a Commitee on Va- 
cant Lot Gardens, which obtains the loan of large 
vacant lots and assigns gardens to anybody who will 
work them. It has a Committee on Parks and Play- 
grounds, which maintains the public park near the 
Pennsylvania Station and has done a great deal to 
develop the playground of Bryn Mawr. It has a 
Committee on Village Improvement, which has had 
Mr. Frederick Law Olmsted, of Boston, one of the 
most expert men on village improvement, come to 
Bryn Mawr and tell us how we can make our town 
more beautiful, and it is now proposing to the Town- 
ship Commissioners what is known as a housing code 
by which every new house which is built in Lower 
Merion Township shall be safe from fire and have 
good plumbing, light and air, and shall help to make 
the town more beautiful. 

Because disaster comes to our town now and 
then and because sometimes citizens of our town may 

43 



be ill or out of work, or some of our children may be 
left with no one to care for them, ten of our churches 
and our civic and relief organizations banded together 
in the year 1911 to form a society. This organization 
is known as the Social Service Department of 
the Federation of Churches. It is managed by a 
Board of Representatives from these various organi- 
zations, and it has a secretary whose duty it is to give 
friendly advice to the members of the community 
who live between Overbrook and Villa Nova. If a 
person has been at the hospital and needs convales- 
cent care, if it is necessary to arrange for the care of 
aged persons, if children are without homes or need 
special protection, this secretary, with her voluntary 
assistants, is ready to serve as a friend in need. Thus, 
in the year 1919, two hundred and sixty-six families 
were aided by this organization. 

Working closely with the Federation of 
Churches and sharing its office in the Milestone is the 
Red Cross Home Service. When so many of our men 
were ready to give their lives for the cause of the war, 
these soldiers and sailors often left families who 
needed advice and assistance, and everyone knows 
what a friend the Red Cross Home Service was and 
still is to the men of our army and to their families. 
Anyone can imagine the questions which came up 
and were very hard for any family to answer during 
the war because husbands or fathers or sons or 
brothers were fighting in France. 

In 1916 the people of Bryn Mawr decided that 

m 



they wanted a social center, and so representatives 
from all of the different organizations of the town, 
including those which we have just mentioned and 
the churches and business men's club, the business 
women's club, and a great many other groups, formed 
a committee of sixty citizens and organized the Bryn 
Mawr Community Center. An Executive Committee 
was chosen and it immediately secured from the 
School Board the use of the wing back of the old 
schoolhouse on the Pike and two adjacent rooms of 
the school building. During these three years the 
Bryn Mawr Community Center has grown from a 
very small organization to a very large one. It now 
occupies not only the rooms at the rear of the school- 
house, but it maintains the social center at the Mile- 
stone, and it has joined with the citizens of Haver- 
ford and with them directs all of the activities at the 
Preston Center on Preston Avenue in what used to be 
known as the Preston Reading Room. 

In 1918, the people of our town who had built 
up the Bryn Mawr Community Center rented the 
oldest house on the Lancaster Turnpike in Bryn 
Mawr for a social center for the town and called it 
the Milestone, because in front of it was one of the 
oldest milestones of the town. It was soon decided 
that it would be a good thing for all these organiza- 
tions to have their offices in this social center, and 
so the Main Line Citizens' Association, the Federa- 
tion of Churches, the Home Service of the Red Cross. 

45 



now are all together at the Milestone with the Com- 
munity Center. 

The little children from the Bryn Mawr School 
have lunches served to them by the Community Cen- 
ter; the children of our town under six years of age 
now go to school at the kindergarten of the Center. 
The older children have a playground, which is car- 
ried on by the Center at the school building after 
three o'clock. The boys and girls of the town have 
a great many clubs which hold their meetings at the 
schoolhouse or the Milestone, under the direction of 
the Center. If our children, our boys and girls, our 
young men and young women, or our citizens, wish to 
attend gymnasium classes or to hold athletic games, 
or to learn carpentry, or dressmaking, or French, or 
if they wish to attend lectures or concerts, they go to 
the Center. Through the Center the town has built 
up a public library with almost a thousand members 
and over two thousand books. Five hundred dollars 
is now given by the School Directors toward its sup- 
port. 

The Center maintains a night school in which 
men are able to learn English and other branches, 
and it provides for co-operation in social and civic 
movements all along the Main Line. 

Anyone over sixteen years of age may become a 
member of the Bryn Mawr Community Center Asso- 
ciation and have a vote with regard to all of its busi- 
ness by paying at least $1.00 membership dues. 

46 



This story of Our Town and How We Are Gov- 
erned has been prepared under the direction of the 
Bryn Mawr Community Center, so that everybody 
in the town may know all about the way in which 
the town governs itself and what it tries to do to make 
its town more beautiful and its people healthier, hap- 
pier and more intelligent. 



47 






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